The morning light filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows of our penthouse, casting long shadows across the polished hardwood floors. I stood by the window, one hand resting on my slightly swollen belly, the other pressed against the cool glass. Five months pregnant with the future heir of the Obsidian Ridge Pack, and something felt... wrong.

My wolf, Aria, paced restlessly within me. *Something's off, Tessa. The bond feels thinner today.*

"It's just pregnancy hormones," I whispered, though I knew it was more than that. The sacred fated mate scent that had once enveloped Christopher and me was fading—so subtly that I'd tried to ignore it for weeks.

The elevator chimed, and Christopher stepped into our living space. My Alpha. My mate. The man whose touch once sent electricity through my veins now moved with calculated precision, his gaze sweeping over me with clinical detachment.

"You look tired," he said, his voice carrying that hint of command that made my wolf whimper. "The pup is draining you."

I nodded, desperate to believe his concern was genuine. "I haven't been sleeping well."

Christopher crossed the room in three long strides, reaching into his suit jacket to produce a sleek black box. "I've been working on something for you."

Inside lay a state-of-the-art biometric smartwatch, its surface gleaming with subtle Obsidian Ridge Pack markings—our wolf crest etched into the durable glass face.

"It's a prototype," he explained, taking my wrist to fasten it around my pulse point. "Specifically designed to monitor your vitals and the pup's development."

Aria growled softly. *He's never shown this much interest in the pregnancy before.*

"Thank you," I said aloud, ignoring my wolf's suspicion. The watch was beautiful—sleek and feminine despite its obvious technology. "It's... thoughtful."

Christopher's fingers lingered on my wrist, but the touch felt perfunctory rather than intimate. "It'll alert me to any changes in your condition. I need to know you're both safe."

*Safe? Or controlled?* Aria challenged silently.

"I'm fine," I insisted, both to Christopher and my wolf. "Really."

His eyes—those piercing blue eyes that once looked at me with such desire—studied me with something closer to assessment than affection. "You don't need to be strong all the time, Luna. That's what your Alpha is for."

The words should have comforted me. Instead, they felt like another layer of performance.

---

Three days later, Christopher left for another "business trip." The smartwatch buzzed incessantly against my skin, its alerts lighting up the screen with alarming frequency.

*Stress levels elevated.*

*Heart rate abnormal.*

*Aura fluctuation detected.*

I stared at the notifications in confusion. I was sitting quietly in the sunroom, reading pack reports, completely at rest.

"This thing is malfunctioning," I muttered, tapping the screen to dismiss yet another alert.

The door opened, and my mother-in-law glided in with her practiced smile. "There you are, dear. I've made you a special smoothie."

She held out a tall glass filled with a greenish liquid that smelled of spinach and something else—something bitter that made my nose wrinkle.

"What's in it?" I asked, accepting the glass reluctantly.

"Just some detoxifying greens and dietary supplements," she replied, watching me expectantly. "For the pup's development. You've been so tired lately."

I took a small sip to appease her, the bitter taste lingering on my tongue. Aria immediately recoiled. *Don't drink that again.*

"But it's good for the baby?" I asked, setting the glass down.

"Of course," she insisted. "I only want what's best for my son's heir."

As she left, the watch buzzed again. I frowned at the screen—another spike in stress indicators, though I felt perfectly calm.

---

"I need this fixed," I told the Omega IT technician, extending my arm to show him the malfunctioning watch. "It keeps giving false readings."

The young man—barely twenty and clearly nervous in my presence—nodded quickly. "Yes, Luna. I'll run a diagnostic right away."

We were in the pack's server room, surrounded by the hum of technology that powered our modern pack house. The Omega's fingers flew over his keyboard as he connected my watch to his system.

"Strange," he murmured. "There seems to be a synchronization error."

I watched as he worked, impressed by his focus despite his low rank. "What does that mean?"

"It's like... the watch isn't paired with your biometric data." He frowned at his screen. "Hold on, let me bypass this firewall to see if—"

The main monitor suddenly flickered, displaying a new interface. My blood ran cold as I read the words across the top: "Castillo Vital Signs Monitoring - Alpha Eyes Only."

"What is this?" I whispered.

The technician's eyes widened in horror. "I didn't mean to—this shouldn't be—"

But I wasn't listening anymore. On the screen were detailed readings—heart rate, aura strength, location coordinates—all labeled with a name that made my wolf howl in anguish.

Sylvie Castillo.

As I stared in disbelief, a new notification appeared: "Subject experiencing elevated stress levels. Recommend immediate intervention."

And beneath it, in Christopher's unmistakable digital signature: "Sending calming agents and arranging private healer visit."

The watch on my wrist wasn't monitoring me at all.

It was tracking his mistress.

The screen's glow illuminated the technician's pale face as his fingers trembled over the keyboard. I stood behind him, my hand instinctively cradling my belly as if I could shield our pup from the truth unfolding before us.

"Luna, I—I'm so sorry," he stammered, eyes fixed on the monitor. "I didn't know what was on these servers."

"Neither did I," I whispered, my voice surprisingly steady despite the earthquake happening inside me. "But we need to know more."

Aria growled within me. *Dig deeper. We deserve to know everything.*

The Omega—his name was Marcus, I suddenly remembered—nodded with surprising determination. "I can decrypt the cloud account if you give me a few minutes."

I glanced toward the door. "How long?"

"Five minutes, tops."

I nodded, moving to stand guard by the entrance. My heart hammered against my ribs as I listened for any approaching footsteps. Five minutes could feel like an eternity when you were betraying your Alpha.

"There," Marcus whispered, his voice tight with tension. "I'm in."

The monitor flickered, revealing a digital treasure trove of betrayal. My fingers curled into fists as Marcus navigated through folders labeled with dates and locations.

"Look at this," he said, pointing to a series of notifications. "Whenever her stress levels spiked above normal, Alpha Christopher would receive an immediate alert."

I leaned closer, watching as he clicked on one such instance. A timestamp from three weeks ago showed Sylvie's heart rate suddenly elevating. Within minutes, Christopher had ordered a private healer to her apartment.

"He never called healers for me," I said, the words tasting bitter on my tongue. "Not even when I collapsed after the pack run last month."

Marcus's hands hesitated over the keyboard. "I'm sorry, Luna."

He clicked on another folder labeled "Gifts." My stomach lurched as images of purchase receipts filled the screen—designer clothes, jewelry, even a weekend getaway to a luxury cabin in the mountains.

"All paid from pack accounts," Marcus noted quietly. "Not his personal funds."

Of course not. Why waste his own money on his mistress when he could use our pack's resources?

"There's more," Marcus said, his voice dropping even lower as he opened a folder labeled "Communications."

My breath caught as dozens of mind-link transcripts appeared on screen. I recognized Christopher's digital signature immediately, alongside Sylvie's.

*My love, your aura feels unsettled today. I'm sending calming agents to your office.*

*Sylvie: Thank you, Christopher. Your concern means everything to me.*

*Just a few more months. Once the heir is born, everything changes.*

I scrolled faster, my eyes burning as I read their intimate exchanges. Then one message stopped me cold:

*Once Tessa delivers the pup, I'll use my Alpha command to force her rejection. The bond will break, and you'll take your rightful place as Luna.*

Sylvie's reply came moments later: *I'll be waiting, my Alpha. Our pups will rule this territory together.*

The room tilted around me. My legs threatened to give way as Aria howled in silent agony within me.

"He planned this," I whispered, my voice hollow. "All along."

Marcus looked physically ill. "Luna, I—"

"I need a copy of everything," I cut him off, my mind suddenly crystal clear. "Can you download it all?"

He nodded quickly, inserting a flash drive into the computer. "It'll take a few minutes."

I stood frozen, staring at the evidence of my mate's betrayal while the drive copied file after file. Each percentage point felt like another nail in the coffin of my marriage.

---

I returned to our quarters—no, Christopher's quarters—with the flash drive burning a hole in my pocket. The weight of what I'd discovered pressed down on me like a physical force.

Aria paced restlessly within me. *We need to protect ourselves. And the pup.*

"I know," I murmured, running my hand over my belly. "We will."

The door opened, and my mother-in-law glided in with her practiced smile and another tall glass filled with greenish liquid.

"Time for your daily smoothie, dear," she said, setting it down on the coffee table. "I added extra supplements today."

I lifted the glass, pretending to take a sip while watching her over the rim. For the first time, I noticed how her eyes tracked my movements—not with concern, but with calculation.

As she turned away, I caught a whiff of something beneath the fruit scent—something metallic and repulsive that made Aria recoil violently.

*Wolfsbane,* my wolf snarled. *She's poisoning us.*

I set the glass down, my hand trembling slightly. "Thank you," I said, forcing a smile. "It's delicious."

She beamed, patting my hand. "I'll leave you to rest then."

As soon as the door closed, I grabbed a sterile sample vial from my medical kit and carefully poured a small amount of the smoothie into it. The rest went straight down the drain.

Holding up the vial to the light, I could see tiny flecks of something that didn't belong in any health drink.

"What have you been putting in these, Mother?" I whispered to the empty room.

The answer was clear—and terrifying.

I woke to darkness, my body feeling heavier than it had the day before. The sunlight filtering through the blinds seemed too bright, too harsh. I lifted my hand to shield my eyes, noticing how my Luna aura—once vibrant and commanding—now flickered weakly around my fingertips.

"You're fading," Aria whimpered inside me. "We're both fading."

I struggled to sit up, my limbs protesting even this small effort. Five months pregnant, and I felt like I was carrying the weight of the entire pack on my shoulders. Or perhaps it was the weight of Christopher's betrayal pressing down on me.

"We need to see the data," I murmured, reaching for my pack datapad on the nightstand.

The screen illuminated my pale face as I navigated to my medical dashboard—the one Christopher had assured me would monitor my health and the pup's development. The numbers stared back at me, perfectly normal. Perfectly healthy.

Perfectly lies.

"No," I whispered, zooming in on the vitals. "This can't be right."

My heart rate was listed as 72 beats per minute. Steady. Normal. But I could feel it racing in my chest, far faster than the screen indicated.

Aria growled. *He's manipulated the data. We're trapped in his digital cage.*

I scrolled through the dashboard, checking each measurement. Blood pressure. Oxygen saturation. Aura strength. All showing optimal readings while I sat here, weak and trembling.

"He's been altering my medical records," I realized aloud, my voice hollow. "Making sure I wouldn't see the truth."

The truth that I was dying. The truth that our pup was in danger.

I set the datapad down, my decision crystallizing. "We need outside help. Someone who isn't loyal to him."

---

"The quarterly facility inspection is a Luna duty," I announced to the pack administrator the next morning, keeping my voice steady despite the effort it cost me. "I'll be conducting it today."

The young Beta nodded quickly. "Of course, Luna. Would you like an escort?"

"No need," I replied, offering a smile that didn't reach my eyes. "I prefer to conduct inspections personally."

It was a lie—I'd never shown interest in facility inspections before—but my Luna status granted me the authority to roam the pack house freely. Including the medical wing.

I made my way through the corridors slowly, conserving my strength. Each step felt like walking through water, but I forced myself forward. The pack clinic was at the far end of the east wing, conveniently empty during midday shifts.

Except for Dr. Nathan Oliver, who remained in his office regardless of schedule.

"Luna Tessa," he said, rising from his desk as I entered. His eyes narrowed slightly at my appearance. "You don't look well."

"Lock the door," I whispered urgently.

His expression shifted from professional concern to alarm as he complied. "What's going on?"

I pulled the flash drive from my pocket first. "Everything you need to know about Christopher's betrayal is on here." Then I placed the vial of smoothie sample on his desk. "And everything you need to know about why I'm dying is in there."

Nathan's hands trembled slightly as he accepted both items. "Luna, if this is what I think it is—"

"It is," I cut him off. "And I need your help."

---

The blood test took twenty minutes. Twenty minutes of silence broken only by the hum of medical equipment and Nathan's occasional muttered curses.

I sat on the examination table, watching his face grow increasingly grim as he analyzed the samples.

"This is..." he began, then stopped, shaking his head. "This is wolfsbane, Luna. Trace amounts, but consistent with long-term exposure."

The room seemed to tilt around me. "How long?"

"Weeks, based on these levels." Nathan's voice was tight with controlled anger. "Who's been giving this to you?"

"My mother-in-law," I whispered. "In her special smoothies. For the pup's development."

Nathan's hands clenched into fists. "This isn't just poisoning—it's attempted murder. Of you and the heir."

"She wants me gone," I said, the pieces falling into place. "She wants Sylvie to take my place. To bear Christopher's pups instead of mine."

"The former Luna has violated every medical and pack law," Nathan said, his professional demeanor cracking to reveal genuine disgust. "And the Alpha—your mate—he's been covering it up."

I nodded slowly, one hand resting protectively over my belly. "Can you help me?"

Nathan met my gaze, his eyes filled with determination and something else—something that looked remarkably like loyalty to me rather than to his Alpha.

"I took an oath to protect all pack members," he said firmly. "And I intend to honor it."

As he spoke, I felt something shift within me—a spark of hope igniting where there had been only darkness.

But first, we needed a plan.